


pilot

by ellie_cat



Series: manifest [1]
Category: ATEEZ (Band), ONEUS (Band), ONEWE (Band)
Genre: Aged-Down Character(s), Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Manifest, Alternate Universe - Mystery, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Choreographer Yeo Hwanwoong, Doctor Keonhee, High School Student Xion, Keyboardist Dongmyeong, M/M, Most of ATEEZ are Police Officers, NYPD Lieutenant Hongjoong, NYPD Officers Yunho & Wooyoung, Not Beta'd, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Paranormal, Passenger Hwanwoong, Passenger Keonhee, Passenger Xion, Passenger Yeosang, Producer RAVN | Kim Youngjo, halloween fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-25
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-02 06:43:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 14,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21157328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ellie_cat/pseuds/ellie_cat
Summary: Hwanwoong and Xion take the later flight back home to NYC from LA after the airline asks for volunteers to take a later one. During the flight, they experience an extremely unusual bout of turbulence, but land as expected... except, the flight wasn't routine at all- it's been five years since their plane took off from LA.Soon, strange things begin to happen to passengers of Delta Airlines Flight 828 like Yeo Hwanwoong, Son Dongju, Kang Yeosang, and Lee Keonhee. what happened during their flight, and what's happening to them now?This is an AU based off of NBC's show 'Manifest'. I have literally watched one episode. we'll see how this goes. :)





	1. turbulence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Well, let me just put it this way. Your flight left Los Angeles on October 7th, 2014, right?” Hwanwoong heard several voices agree, and the officer sighed, swallowing, before continuing, louder, this time. “Today is October 21st, 2019.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a small scene (somewhat important to the plot but all you really need to know is that they go through a bout of extreme turbulence) where they think they'll crash, so if that bothers you, please read with caution!
> 
> Character Ages :  
\- Youngjo (RAVN) : 22 (Start) 27 (End)  
\- Dongmyeong : 17 (Start) 22 (End)  
\- Dongju (XION) : 17  
\- Hwanwoong : 22
> 
> In this AU, Hwanwoong and Youngjo are engaged **(please, do not force this onto their relationship irl, respect that they are bandmates and friends only)** Dongju and Dongmyeong are Youngjo's twin cousins, who spend a lot of time with the pair because their parents are busy a lot of the time.

Only halfway through this flight and Hwanwoong’s already so fucking ready to be off of it. It’d been a stressful past few days, getting the showcase in LA ready, but he’d done it, everything had gone without a hitch, and now all he wanted was to join his fiancé back home. Because of the amount of people needing to travel from LA, the airline had had to ask that some passengers remain behind for a second flight, and Hwanwoong had volunteered because Youngjo had a meeting he needed to be at and the younger of the twins, Dongmyeong, had needed to be back for a school concert. Dongju hadn’t really had much going on, so he and Dongju had volunteered to stay back for the second flight. 

“When will we be back, again?” Dongju asks, glancing up at him from his phone, where he’d been watching some Netflix series. 

“Not for another two hours, at the very least. God, I am so ready to be back though,” Hwanwoong groaned, and Dongju snickered at him.

“Are you going to try and sleep, or should I lend you an earbud so we can watch this together?” Dongju asked, once he’d quit laughing at him. Hwanwoong sighed. He wanted to sleep, but he also had a history of not being able to sleep on flights and knew that it was futile, so he groaned again and held out a hand for one. Dongju smiled.

“What are you watching?” Hwanwoong hummed, and Dongju shrugged. 

“Just Lost again. It’s the only thing I had time to download before we had to leave. Hotel wifi is so shitty,” Dongju complained, and Hwanwoong laughed wryly.

“Cheers, I’ll drink to that bro,” Hwanwoong said, enjoying the way Dongju wrinkled his nose and cringed away from him at the phrase.

“Do you want your Lost privileges revoked? Because this is how you get your Lost privileges revoked, old man!” Dongju, feigning disgust. Hwanwoong snickered.

“I am not old! I’m only five years older than you! I have an account on the Instagram and the Twitter and everything!” Dongju mimed puking, and Hwanwoong grinned. Dongju pointedly didn’t say anything back, and just as they settled in to watch the show, the plane started to hit some turbulence. Dongju frowned, but remained as focused as he could on the show. Hwanwoong knew Dongju didn’t like turbulence, being a newer flyer than Hwanwoong, and he knew how it felt, being unsure of whether the bout of turbulence would get better or if it would be the one bout to send them crashing to the ground. Hwanwoong reaches around his shoulders and hugs him close. Normally, Dongju wouldn’t allow such affection from him, but he seemed to be making an allowance for the time when he didn’t pull out of the grip.

“Thanks,” Dongju muttered, and almost as soon as the word had left his lips did the turbulence go from the normal bout to full on shaking the cabin. And not only shaking it, but like someone was violently shaking it. 

Passengers were screaming as lightning flashed outside the windows, and alarms started to go off. Masks dropped before Hwanwoong could even really process what was happening, and Dongju was already putting on his mask as Hwanwoong was reaching for his. Once Hwanwoong had finally secured his mask, he looked to Dongju and found the younger already looking to him, terror making his eyes go impossibly wide. Hwanwoong knew he was mirroring the look as he thought of everyone in his life, and prayed to a God he wasn’t sure he believed in that he’d be able to see Youngjo’s soft smile and see Dongmyeong playing the keyboard for his school band at an event again. Hwanwoong reached for Dongju, and they held tight to each other as the cabin shook seemingly endlessly around them, trying their best to block out people’s terrified cries and panicked screams. 

And just like that, what felt like an eternity later, it stopped, like it had never been shaking. It took several long, disbelieving moments for the other passengers to realize they were safe yet again, and for the sobs to quiet to loud sniffles as people held onto the people closest to them to calm themselves down. 

“This is your Captain speaking,” a voice chimes through the speakers, “we’re terribly sorry for the immense fright that must have been,” Hwanwoong almost laughed a bit at how shaken even the pilot sounded. Almost, because he knew if he thought about it too much that tremor in the speaker's voice would scare him more than he could say, “but everything seems to be fine now. We’ll try to get you folks back home as quick as possible, so please, take this time to calm down and collect yourselves. We’ll get you home safe.” With that, the speakers cut out with a soft pop, and Hwanwoong finally felt confident enough in removing his mask to take real deep breaths. Dongju had done the same beside him, one-handed as they clutched at each other’s hands, still terrified of what had almost happened. 

“Did- did we almost... ?” Dongju trailed off, voice weak and small, so quiet Hwanwoong almost hadn’t even heard it. Even though he hadn’t managed to finish the question, Hwanwoong knew what he’d wanted to ask, and didn’t blame the  
boy for not wanting to say it out loud. 

He didn’t want to lie and say no, but he also didn’t want to outright say yes, so, instead Hwanwoong went with a not very convincing sounding “Maybe.”

“Can we call Youngjo-hyung and Dongmyeongie as soon as we can when we land? I think I might need to hear their voices,” Dongju admitted after a few minutes of quiet between them. Hwanwoong nodded, already having planned on doing just that.

“Of course. I need to hear Youngjo-hyung’s voice too. And Dongmyeongie's,” Hwanwoong agreed, shifting closer to the teen at his side. 

“We shouldn’t have volunteered to stay behind,” Dongju said, leaving no room to interpret the statement as a question. 

“Maybe,” Hwanwoong said, and Dongju snorted.

“You’re allowed to be scared and have regrets, you know. Even at the ripe old age of 22,” Dongju teased, smirking half-heartedly. Hwanwoong felt himself offering a small smile back, glad that Dongju wasn’t too shaken up that he’d quit calling Hwanwoong old. 

“You brat, I’ve half a mind to tell your parents about how disrespectful you are to me, all the time, constantly, every time we see each other,” Hwanwoong teased back, and Dongju chuckled softly. 

“You would never, besides, they looo~-,” Dongju’s retort was cut short by the soft beeping sound of the speaker, and everyone fell quiet as the captain’s voice filtered through again.

“Sorry to interrupt everyone’s moments, but I have to let everyone know that air control is requesting we land in an airport just a little ways away from New York City. It shouldn’t take more than an extra ten to twenty minutes to get there, and we’ll do our best to make sure everyone is getting where they need to go. That’s all, please return to relaxing until we land,” the captain announced, and when Hwanwoong glanced back over at Dongju from where he’d focused on the speaker overhead, Dongju was frowning, confused. 

“They don’t usually do that, do they?” Dongju asked, and Hwanwoong shrugged. 

“Maybe too many flights are coming in at once. I’m sure they’ll take care of us once we land,” he offered, and Dongju shook his head. 

“It’s a Tuesday, there aren’t that many flights on a Tuesday,” Dongju murmured. 

“How would you know that?” Hwanwoong asked, teasing the younger. Dongju shrugged. 

“I was looking up flight facts at LAX because I was bored,” Dongju grumbled. Hwanwoong smiled despite the unsettling feeling making its home in the pit of his stomach.

“I feel like most people would pointedly _not_ do that before a flight,” Hwanwoong pointed out, and Dongju simply shrugged again, looking back down at his phone. Miraculously, it had remained in his lap and hadn’t broken during the turbulence, and turned on just fine. 

“Wanna finish that Lost episode? We probably have enough time for another after that, too,” Dongju asked, and Hwanwoong nodded. Hopefully watching it would help calm him down enough to actually sleep tonight. 

He’d almost forgotten about the detour by the time the seatbelt lights came on, and the captain’s voice filtered through the speakers again, asking passengers to prepare for landing, and when he looked out the window, did not see LGA like he’d been expecting. The flight landed without much fanfare, and Hwanwoong was almost beginning to think everything was fine. Almost. Because when he snuck a glance out the window behind Dongju, he saw more police cars in one place than he’d seen in his entire life before now. He swallowed, and when Dongju noticed, he turned around, gasping when he took in the multitude of cop cars outside. 

“What the fuck,” slipped out of Dongju’s mouth, and, because, frankly, Hwanwoong was inclined to agree, he just nodded. 

“Well, this is unusual, folks. I’m sorry about all of this, but they’re asking us to unload everyone right here on the tarmac,” the captain said, “Please leave your belongings onboard as you disembark, and try to remain calm.”

Dongju grimaced when he turned back around to face Hwanwoong, closing Netflix and taking his phone off Airplane Mode. His grimace turned deeper when he showed that he wasn’t getting a signal to Hwanwoong. Hwanwoong frowned back. That was weird. Hwanwoong had paid for the very best data plan for himself because of all his travelling, and since the twins were on it with him, Dongju should be getting ok service, even if they weren’t in the heart of New York City. He pulled his own phone out, also taking it off Airplane Mode, and frowned even harder when he saw he wasn’t getting any service either. 

It was a slow process, disembarking. People were grabbing jackets from their luggage just in case, and they were moving in a sort of shocked, slow haze. Hwanwoong was getting irritated waiting to get off- he just wanted to get home and be cuddled as he fell asleep by Youngjo. Dongju looked to be much the same beside him, but he knew both of them were more worried and scared than anything. Eventually, all of them were off, all huddled together in a large group as a group of important looking police officers headed towards their captains. Hwanwoong watched with interest as they conversed for what felt like forever, and even under his second hoodie Hwanwoong was getting cold, Dongju clinging onto his frame for warmth. 

Hwanwoong was about to ask what was going on when another passenger beat him to the punch: “Hey! There are sick and elderly people here, you can’t just keep us here! What’s going on?”

The shortest officer, the one wearing a gray woolen trench coat with a short black haircuit, walked over to them and paused a few feet away. “We understand that, and we really are trying to be as quick as possible about this, however, it’s taking a long time because, well…,” the officer trailed off, biting his lip and looking down, brows furrowed like he couldn’t decide on what he wanted to say. “Well, let me just put it this way. Your flight left Los Angeles on October 7th, 2014, right?” Hwanwoong heard several voices agree, and the officer sighed, swallowing, before continuing, louder, this time. “Today is October 21st, 2019.”

* * *

“_In other news, earlier this morning, around 3AM, LaGuardia Airport in New York City reported being contacted by Delta Airlines Flight 828 from Los Angeles for landing, the very same flight that disappeared almost exactly five years ago without a trace. We have contacted the police, Delta Airlines, LaGuardia, and Newark Liberty for more information, but none have called us back, and no new information has been offered. We will update you on this story as it develops_-,” the announcer’s voice cuts off, and silence falls between the two of them. 

A phone rings further in the house, and they separate. The sound of strained, quiet talking is heard, and then footsteps as they meet in the middle. “Get dressed. We’re cleared to go.”

“That means-,” the other starts. 

“Yes,” the first to speak answers without waiting for the complete question, because they both know what it is, “they’re alive.” Neither has ever moved so fast in their lives.


	2. hangar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“So, what would you like to know, Officer?”_
> 
> _“Did your plane ever make a stop anywhere?” Lieutenant Kim says, and Hwanwoong immediately shakes his head. _
> 
> _“No, not until we landed here,” Hwanwoong says, and almost expects Lieutenant Kim to be surprised, but the lieutenant just nods like he was expecting it (which he probably was, after interviewing so many of the passengers already). _
> 
> _“Do you remember anything weird happening?” Lieutenant Kim asks, and Hwanwoong hesitates._

Immediately upon the revelation, chaos breaks loose. Cries of “How?” and “You have to be lying!” ring out, and Hwanwoong has to give it to this police officer, he’s bearing it like a champ. Dongju has tightened his hold on Hwanwoong’s shoulders, breathing heavily with his head tucked into Hwanwoong’s back like he’s trying to hide from reality, and Hwanwoong doesn’t blame him. If he could, he would too, but he’s the adult here, and he’s going to pretend like he’s dealing with this well for Dongju’s benefit because the other is still a kid. At 17, Hwanwoong knows he sure as hell would’ve reacted the same way. 

“Please, calm down,” another, much taller, blond police officer yells, his commanding voice making everyone instantly quiet. “We’ve set up an emergency crisis center inside the hangar, so if all of you would please follow my partner here,” he says, motioning to the slightly shorter police officer dressed in an actual uniform, “to the hangar, we’ll get you food, water, and beds for the night. We will also have to ask everyone some questions to try and figure out what happened. Try and be as honest as possible- the more honest you are, the sooner you’ll get to see your family and go home. Got it?” A wave of mumbled agreements passes through the huddle, and then they’re following the brown-haired police officer into the hangar. 

Dongju hasn’t let go of Hwanwoong once throughout all of this. If it’s even possible, he’s held on even tighter, refusing to look up and around. Hwanwoong still doesn’t blame him. When they enter, Hwanwoong weaves them through the huddle, grabbing two waters, two granola bars, and a blanket from the tables set up near the entrance. He then carefully weaves them through the mess of beds they’ve set up and finds one in a far corner, and sets Dongju down. 

“Can you tell me how you’re feeling, Xionie?” He asks, setting the stuff he’d picked out onto the floor next to the bed carefully, before guiding Dongju to lie down and placing the blanket over him. Dongju immediately curls into it and whimpers, tears starting to trickle onto his cheeks. Hwanwoong swears, then, that if the short one is the one to interview him, he’s going to give him hell for saying it so abruptly like that. 

“I- Is it true?” Dongju asks, voice small and heavy with unshed tears. 

“I don’t know,” Hwanwoong admits, biting his lower lip at the anxiety rising in him at that being true. It’s unbelievable- how could they have been gone for five years when he doesn’t remember ever stopping anywhere? Wouldn’t he remember those five years? Wouldn’t they all? Surely they would. Dongju starts to cry at that, and Hwanwoong’s heart breaks a little (read: a lot). It is his fault, after all, that they’d even been so far away from home that they’d needed to take a plane back. They’d been in LA for his work, his job as a choreographer; it was his fault. 

When Hwanwoong can’t think of anything more to say, he swallows and lays himself down beside his fiance’s cousin and comforts Dongju with gentle back rubs until the crying subsides and Dongju’s breathing evens out enough to tell him he’s fallen asleep. Hwanwoong grimaces and thanks whatever lucky stars he has that Dongju, at least, is able to sleep.

The next thing he knows, he’s being shaken gently awake, and when he opens his eyes, it’s to a high, metallic ceiling and Dongju’s red, puffy eyes looking down at him. When Hwanwoong sits up, he notices the officer standing next to him, politely not exactly looking at them but not exactly looking away either. “It’s your turn next,” Dongju says, voice scratchy and weak like he’s been crying. HIs voice would’ve been a dead giveaway had his eyes not still been red. Hwanwoong curses out loud as he sits up and swings his legs over the side of the cot to the stand. 

“I should’ve been awake when you left. I should’ve gone as far as I could with you so you weren’t alone throughout it all,” Hwanwoong mumurs to Dongju, who only offers him a small smile. 

“It’s ok. You looked like you needed the sleep, and it wasn’t that bad. They only asked what happened a few times, and then they let me come back,” Dongju tells him. Hwanwoong huffs a bitter laugh. 

“We don’t use interrogation techniques on civilians, and definitely not on minors,” the officer standing next to them says, and Hwanwoong laughs at that. 

“I’m sure,” he says, tone dry, to the officer. To Dongju, he says, “Stay right here, ok? I’ll be right back.”

“M’not a kid,” Dongju says, though he looks grateful for a reason Hwanwoong can’t quite pinpoint in the moment. “Just go. I’ll be here when you get back. Unless I have to go the bathroom. Then I’ll be over by the porta-potties they have set up over by the door.”

“Porta-potties? That’s… lovely of them to provide,” Hwanwoong jokes, and Dongju laughs when the officer coughs. 

“We could just have you go outside,” the officer says, sounding a bit miffed. Hwanwoong laughs. 

“Sure you would!” Hwanwoong says, nodding, “Let’s go get this over with.”

“Then please, follow me,” the officer says, and starts leading him towards the small white tent near the door. “Please remember to be as honest as possible while you’re in there, and give as much detail as you can.”

“Yeah, yeah, can I just go right in?” Hwanwoong asks. The officer nods, and stops right outside the door, turning his back to it and standing to the left like he’s guarding it. “Alright, well, thanks, I guess.” The officer offers him another short nod in response, and then, he goes in, tentatively. 

Sitting at the table in the center is the short officer from before, still in his trench coat and looking like he desperately needs a cup of coffee, but he soldiers on nonetheless into his introduction, and offers Hwanwoong a tight smile. 

“Good morning, Mr.Yeo, my name is Kim Hongjoong, a lieutenant with the New York Police Department. I’m sure you’re still exhausted, so let’s try and get this over with as quickly as possible,” the lieutenant says and motions for Hwanwoong to sit in the chair. He takes a few more steps into the room and pauses when he sees the taller blond officer from before standing silent in the corner of the room. “Don’t mind my officer, Yunho is just here to make sure no one gets physical in their complaints.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem with me,” Hwanwoong says earnestly, and takes the seat waiting for him. “So, what would you like to know, Officer?”

“Did your plane ever make a stop anywhere?” Lieutenant Kim says, and Hwanwoong immediately shakes his head. 

“No, not until we landed here,” Hwanwoong says, and almost expects Lieutenant Kim to be surprised, but the lieutenant just nods like he was expecting it (which he probably was, after interviewing so many of the passengers already, or, at least, Hwanwoong thinks he has). 

“Do you remember anything weird happening?” Lieutenant Kim asks, and Hwanwoong hesitates. 

“Depends on your specific definition of ‘weird’,” Hwanwoong replies, honestly. 

“Anything not routine. Your file tells me you’re a consistent flyer. You should know what I mean when I say ‘anything weird’,” Lieutenant Kim explains, and Hwanwoong nods. 

“There was some really, really intense turbulence a little over halfway through the flight. The masks came out and everything. I remember seeing lightning but I don’t remember any thunder. It just suddenly stopped after I don’t know how long, and then everything was fine again,” Hwanwoong answered, looking up at the ceiling of the tent to try and see if there was anything else. “It was really sudden. We hadn’t even experienced any noticeable turbulence until then, come to think of it.”

“And that’s the only thing you can think of out of the usual,” Lieutenant Kim pushes, and Hwanwoong nods. 

“Yep, that’s the only thing I can think of,” he answers, and the lieutenant nods, settling back into his chair a little bit further. 

“You said you saw lightning,” Lieutenant Kim says, more of a statement than anything else. Hwanwoong nods. 

“I don’t know if it actually was or if that’s just how I identified it, but I saw a bright flash of light when the turbulence was happening,” Hwanwoong confirmed, and the lieutenant nodded again. “Aren’t you going to write anything down?” Hwanwoong asked, just now noticing the officer didn’t have anything in front of him besides, presumably, their flight’s case file. 

“There’s a camera in the corner above Yunho- not because we don’t trust you, but just because there’s no errors in a recording compared to the errors and biases that can go into writing notes,” Lieutenant Kim explains, and Hwanwoong nods. 

“Well, was that all?” Hwanwoong asks, and the lieutenant hesitates for a moment before nodding. 

“Thank you for your cooperation,” Lieutenant Kim says, and stands. Hwanwoong follows his lead, and Lieutenant Kim takes him to the entrance of the tent. “I hope the best for you.”

“Thank you,” Hwanwoong murmurs, and then steps out of the tent. The officer that lead him here is still standing next to the door, and nods when Hwanwoong steps out. 

“Can you find your way back to where you were?” He asks, and Hwanwoong nods. “Well, if you need anything, just ask for Officer Jung.” 

“Bet you tell that to everyone here,” Hwanwoong says, making an attempt at a joke, and the officer smiles. 

“I do, but I mean it for every one of you,” Officer Jung says, and starts walking off towards the back in search of the next interview candidate. 

“Well, that’s good to know, I guess,” Hwanwoong murmurs to himself, and turns to go back to where Dongju is waiting for him, but is stopped by a hand on his shoulder. Hwanwoong jumps, turning back around to face whoever stopped him. 

“Sorry, dude, didn’t mean to scare you like that,” the other guy says, light embarrassment washing over his features. “Just wanted to ask what they do in there- nobody’s answered me and I just keep getting glared at.”

“Haven’t you- haven’t you tried asking the officer standing here?” Hwanwoong asks, and the guy nods. 

“He won’t answer me. I don’t think they will talk to you until after your interview, just in case you’re the one behind it or whatever,” the guy says, and Hwanwoong thinks back to how Officer Jung was before his interview versus after. The guy was definitely warmer after. 

“That… actually makes a lot of sense,” Hwanwoong relents. “Look, I have to get back to the kid I’m with, but what’s your name? I’ll look you up after all this is over.”

“Oh, sorry, I thought you were alone or I wouldn’t have kept you. The name’s Yeosang, Kang Yeosang,” the guy tells him, and Hwanwoong nods. 

“Hwanwoong. Yeo Hwanwoong,” the guy nods, and Hwanwoong turns to leave again, and this time, the guy doesn’t stop him, only says, “Later,” to which Hwanwoong waves without looking back. He’s got Dongju to get back to, after all. 

When he does pick his way back to Dongju, the boy is seated on the bed, blanket covering him, half-emptied water bottle in his lap, and an empty granola bar wrapper by his feet. He gives Hwanwoong a small smile as he comes closer, and makes room for him to sit down on the cot too. 

“How are you feeling, Xionie?” Hwawnoong asks, using Dongju’s nickname between the two of them. Dongju shrugs. 

“I’ve thought about it a little more, I guess. My twin is five years older than me. He’d old now, like you, if it’s been five years,” Dongju says, trying to make it humorous, but Hwanwoong can’t help the way he shudders. “Youngjo-hyung is gonna be even more ancient than he was before,” Dongju finishes, continuing because he didn’t see the shudder. Hwanwoong’s eyes slip closed, trying to imagine his fiance five years older. 

“Oh, oh no, I’m sorry, Woongie-hyung, I didn’t mean to-,” Hwanwoong cuts his apology off, giving him a tight smile. 

“It’s okay. I know you didn’t mean to. Besides, I’ve been avoiding thinking about it before, but I have to face it at some point, we both do,” Hwanwoong tells him, earnestly, and gathers the boy in for a hug. “It’ll be okay.” 

“Ye- yeah,” Dongju agrees, and soon, they’re both falling asleep again. 

The next thing Hwanwoong is aware of is Dongju gently shaking him awake, and when he can finally focus on what’s going on around him, it’s much lighter in the hangar, and there’s a loud voice like it’s coming over a speaker. 

“... we have taken the liberty of contacting any family members and friends we could for every one of you, and most of them are now here, waiting just outside the hangar. Please gather any things you had with you and head to the front. Once you find your family or friend, please head with them to the checkout table at the very front! Thank you! We will repeat this announcement in another ten minutes, and the doors will be opening in twenty. That is all.”

“Are they here?” Hwanwoong asks, once everything has fallen as quiet as it can get with a hundred or so people shuffling back to their cot spaces to collect their items and wait for the doors to open, chatting softly amongst themselves. Dongju shakes his head. 

“I don’t know. The windows are too high up for anyone to look out of. No one knows who’s here, if anyone’s even here, or who exactly is here. Believe me, I’ve been asking around since the first announcement twenty minutes ago,” Dongju explains, and Hwanwoong sighs. 

“You should’ve woken me up twenty minutes ago, then,” Hwanwoong grumbles and Dongju sits down a bit too heavily for his liking besides him. 

“What if they don’t remember us anymore? What if no one’s out there for us?” Dongju asks, his voice barely there, barely a whisper. Hwanwoong almost doesn’t hear it, but he’s so grateful he did. 

“Xionie, you really think your twin, your parents, and your cousin forgot you? I’m the one in trouble here,” Hwanwoong says, trying to lighten the mood a bit, and regrets it almost immediately when Dongju turns to him, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes. “I didn’t mean it like that, I don’t think anyone would forget me,” he says, pulling Dongju into a hug. Dongju sniffs petulantly into the crook of his neck, and holds fast. 

“Youngjo-hyung would never forget you. He looks- looked- at you like you were the world,” Dongju tells him, and Hwanwoong’s heart skips a beat, eyes automatically seeking out the ring on his finger. It’s plain silver, but it shines so easily in the light, like it’s doing now. The sight of it, and all the memories that come with it (Youngjo getting down on one knee, seen out of the corner of his eye because he’d been just about to turn away to look at something, Youngjo kissing it later that week, then looking up at him, eyes shining with so much love, all for Hwanwoong, Youngjo kissing it again before leaving to join Dongmyeong at the gates what seemed like just a day ago) instantly calm him, because he knows Dongju is right. Because he feels the same for Youngjo. 

“Let’s hope he hasn’t given up on me, then. I know it’s kind of selfish, but I love him too much to let him go if he’s with someone else. I don’t know what I’d do if he is,” Hwanwoong admits, and sighs shakily, nervousness coming out in the way he trembles, ever so slightly. 

“He hasn’t. He’s not the type to let go so easily,” Dongju says, confident, and Hwanwoong wishes he had that same determination to him, but he doesn’t. He’s always been scared, always been a coward, but with Youngjo, it was better, because Youngjo, Youngjo’s always been fearless, and when he was scared he still had the bravery to push through and get what he wanted, including Hwanwoong. 

“Well, all we can do is hope, at this point,” Hwanwoong says, and Dongju nods. 

Just as Dongju opens his mouth to say something else, the announcement starts again, and they slowly start making their way towards the front, along with everyone else. They settle in a spot near the back of the crowd to wait, and take each other’s hands. Hwanwoong’s eyes are fixed on the door that has yet to open, and prays Youngjo will be there, for both of them, and not just Dongju. Dongju squeezes his hand once, gently, and brings Hwanwoong’s eyes over to him. He offers a small, encouraging smile, and Hwanwoong feels himself relaxing, just a bit. 

_It’ll be okay_, he tells himself, and he almost believes it. It’s enough to even out his breathing as the ten minutes tick away ever so slowly. A murmur rises throughout the crowd halfway through when they all hear a faint announcement on the other side of the doors. It falls silent, and the door starts to open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry to leave y'all on another cliff hangar!
> 
> this chapter was actually done before i  
posted the first, but then i had to go home  
for the weekend and i don't have wifi so  
i had to wait until today to post it :)
> 
> chapter 3 is mostly written and includes  
more ateez for you atinys that are reading  
this mostly oneus fic ! ateez will start to be  
bigger roles as the story goes on, so don't  
worry atinys!


	3. home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“I thought I’d lost you,” Youngjo says into his hair, and he just holds him._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **me, 2 days away from seeing oneus live :** _head empty, no thoughts, just oneus_
> 
> hhhhhh i'm obsessed with g-idle's lion. anyway! i hope you enjoy! there should be two (?) more chapters until this fic covers the end of the pilot of manifest (the tv show). comments fuel my writing! let me know your theories about what roles i've assigned different characters :)

Instead of looking at the opening doors, he drops his gaze to his ring, glittering in the light spilling through, because he’s always been a coward without Youngjo. Almost immediately sounds of reunion, of sobs of relief and disbelieving laughter fill the air, and Hwanwoong trembles, suddenly entirely too terrified of Youngjo actually being here. The opening of the gates stop, enough to let people in and out, and Hwanwoong hears the noise of a quickly approaching figure fighting their way through the crowd, towards them. Hwanwoong lifts his head, fearing it might be Youngjo, or Dongmyeong, but instead a tall man with bright red dyed hair bursts through, looking around wildly. 

“Mingi?” Hwanwoong hears a familiar voice say, shocked, and when he turns, he sees Yeosang, face slack with surprise. 

“Oh my god, Yeosang!” Mingi cries, breathless, and all but throws himself at a waiting Yeosang. “I thought- we all thought you were gone!” He starts crying into Yeosang’s shoulder, despite being taller than Yeosang, and Hwanwoong can see a few tears showing, unshed, in Yeosang’s own eyes. Hwanwoong suddenly feels like he’s intruding on a private moment, so he turns his head back to look down at his ring, and catches a familiar head of dark hair pushing through the crowd. 

“Youngjo-hyung!” Dongju starts shouting, letting go of Hwanwoong’s hand and pushing through the crowd himself. Hwanwoong swallows, and sets off after him, a bit slower than the younger, heart heavy in his chest. “Youngjo-hyung!”

“Dongju!?” Hwanwoong hears Youngjo answer back, equally as frantic, and Hwanwoong feels his heart beat faster with each step they take closer to him. “Dongju!” They meet somewhere in the middle of their starting points, Dongju throwing himself into Youngjo’s arms. Hwanwoong gasps, hiding himself a bit behind another reuniting pair, and just… observes his fiance. Ex-fiance, maybe. He’s certainly grown, Hwanwoong sees, and it makes his breath catch in his throat. 

“Woongie-hyung?” He hears a voice ask, breathless, to his left, and when he turns, he’s faced with Dongmyeong. Older, definitely, no longer a scrawny seventeen-year-old, but an adult… an adult the same age as him. 

“Dongmyeong?” Hwanwoong asks, and Dongmyeong rushes forward, sweeping him up in a hug. He’s taller than Hwanwoong now, he realizes, and he sob-laughs into the other’s neck. “You’re taller than me now. And you didn’t forget about me.” He actually starts crying then, and Dongmyeong hugs him tighter. 

“We’d never forget you, Woongie-hyung. Not for a second, not for anything,” Dongmyeong tells him, and Hwanwoong laughs through his sobs again, so grateful that he- they- remembered him. Him, and not just Dongju. 

“D-Dongmyeong?” He hears from behind him, and Dongmyeong slowly, assuredly lets go of him before all but sprinting to hug his twin. Dongju immediately starts sobbing, possibly even harder than before. Hwanwoong watches with a small smile for a moment, before he feels someone hug him from behind. He gasps, having almost forgotten the other person that had come for them. 

“I thought I’d lost you,” Youngjo says into his hair, and he just holds him. His voice sounds absolutely wrecked, and Hwanwoong’s heart breaks. “I thought you were gone.” Hwanwoong turns in the embrace and loops his arms around Youngjo’s waist, pleased to find it feels just like he remembers it, and hugs him as tight as he can. 

“I’m not, I would never leave you, okay? I’m here, and I’m not leaving. I promise,” Hwanwoong says, surprised at how level his voice is as he says it, and buries his face into Youngjo’s chest. He’s wearing a new coat unfamiliar to Hwanwoong, and it hurts, that small reminder that it’s been five years. Five years for Youngjo, but barely two days for Hwanwoong. 

“I love you, I still love you so goddamn much,” Youngjo says, and begins to cry, and Hwanwoong feels his heart break clean in half. Youngjo never cried. Not when his childhood dog, Sunny, died of old age, not when he got fired from his first job, one that he’d wanted very much, not even when they’d gotten the news that his grandmother, whom he’d been particularly close to, had died. And so, naturally, Hwanwoong started crying, hugging him as tight as he could and just crying. 

He doesn’t know how long it takes them all to calm down enough to make it over to the check out tables, but they do, and when they do, Hwanwoong looks around to see if he can spot Yeosang or his friend, but isn’t surprised when they seem to have already left. “What are you looking for?” Youngjo murmurs into his ear, and Hwanwoong jumps a little bit before smiling at him. 

“Just another passenger, but it looks like he’s already gone,” Hwanwoong says, squeezing Youngjo’s hand where it’s already held in his own. Youngjo smiles. 

“You made a friend, even in this situation? You’ve always been so fast at that,” Youngjo muses, and Hwanwoong frowns. 

“At what?” Hwanwoong asks, and Youngjo chuckles. 

“Making friends, becoming friendly with people,” Youngjo tells him, and they take another step forward in the line, Dongju and Dongmyeong talking excitedly behind them. 

“You know the reason why?” Hwanwoong mock-whispers, pretending to be serious. Youngjo’s eyes twinkle as he shakes his head. “It’s because I’m friend-sized.” Youngjo laughs at that, one of his full-body laughs that used to be rare and Hwanwoong cherishes because only a few people can bring those laughs out of him. 

“Next!” The chirpy attendant calls, and Youngjo takes the lead. 

“Good morning, ma’am. I’m checking out both Yeo Hwanwoong and Son Dongju,” he tells her, and she nods. 

“Please take a look at the authorized people to check them out and circle which one you are. Then, you’ll need to show me your ID so I can verify you’re really who you say you are,” the attendant says, and the iPad in front of her changes screens, showing Hwanwoong’s file first. The second person on his list, only under his mother, is Youngjo. Youngjo wordlessly hands over his ID as he clicks on his name, and the attendant nods. 

“You’re good to go, Mr.Yeo!” The attendant says to him, giving him a big smile, before turning to Youngjo, “Mr.Kim, you said you were also checking Son Dongju out?” 

“Yes, please,” Youngjo answers, and she nods. The iPad soon shows Dongju’s file, and Hwanwoong frowns at the lack of Dongju’s parents on the list. Instead of three people, Mr. and Mrs. Son and Youngjo, it’s just Youngjo. 

“Youngjo-,” Hwanwoong starts, voice laced with worry, but Youngjo only shakes his head. 

“We planned on telling him at home,” Youngjo says, voice sad. He doesn’t look at Hwanwoong as the attendant finishes verifying his identity and hands his ID back to him. 

“Alright, you’re good to go, guys, I hope you have a good rest of your day, and good luck!” The attendant exclaims, and doesn’t even wait for them to respond before she’s looking behind them and calling, “Next!”

Youngjo doesn’t even bother to tell her to have a good day back, and just takes Hwanwoong’s hand and starts steadily walking towards the exit, Dongmyeong and Dongju following close behind. 

“He’s not going to like that you both decided to keep it from him,” Hwanwoong murmurs, and Youngjo nods. 

“We know. We’re prepared for that,” Youngjo says, and Hwanwoong sighs, looking around for a familiar car, and doesn’t see one. 

“Are you, really?” Hwanwoong asks, and Youngjo sighs. 

“I don’t know,” he answers, honestly, and brings them to a stop in front of a black SUV Hwanwoong doesn’t recognize. He smiles wryly, glancing over at Youngjo. 

“Are you a drug dealer or something now?” Hwanwoong jokes, and Youngjo laughs. 

“No, no, nothing like that. I am, however, a vigilante now, due to my tragic backstory of my fiance and cousin going missing,” Youngjo jokes right back, and Hwanwoong tenses. Youngjo glances over at him worriedly as he finally manages to dig his keys out of his pocket, and unlocks the car. 

“I’m sorry if that was too much, too soon,” Youngjo tells him, earnest and worried and perfect. Hwanwoong smiles and shakes his head as he watches Dongmyeong pull Dongju into the SUV as soon as it’s unlocked. 

“It’s ok, I have to be ok with it at some point, anyway. I can’t just pretend it never happened, you know?” Without another word Hwanwoong pulls the door open and climbs inside. He can feel Youngjo’s eyes linger pensively on him for a moment before the other sighs and walks around to the driver’s side, Hwanwoong watching him through the windshield all the way. 

“Can we just go straight home?” Dongju asks once Youngjo’s climbed into the car. 

“That’s the plan. I am not risking going out into public for a while,” Youngjo responds, and Dongju nods. Hwanwoong looks back and gives him a small smile that he mirrors back. When Hwanwoong’s eyes flick over to Dongmyeong, Dongmyeong gives him a nod, and reaches out to hold Dongju’s hand again. 

“Do you still live in the same apartment?” Hwanwoong asks as Youngjo starts the car and begins to navigate them out of the hectic parking area the police must have set up. Youngjo shakes his head. 

“After you disappeared I didn’t seriously work on anything for a year or so, and had to move in with their parents,” Youngjo says, hooking his thumb back to the twins still chattering away in the backseat. “A few months after that, I’d found a new job with a new label, and I wasn’t putting my all into producing, but since I was working with experienced producers, one of the songs I’d mostly produced ended up doing really well, so I saved up enough money to get a townhouse. And then, well, things happened,” Youngjo’s voice broke a little when he said ‘things happened’, and Hwanwoong frowned, placing his hand gently on Youngjo’s thigh, “and Dongmyeong ended up living with me. He still lives with me whenever his band isn’t on tour. It was when we got the call, but they’d been in the middle of one of their tour breaks so he was back with me.”

“Who is he in a band with? Anyone I know?” Hwanwoong asked, and Youngjo smiled over at him. 

“Giwook,” Youngjo told him, and Hwanwoong whipped over to look at him. 

“Giwook? Tiny Giwook? That Giwook?” Hwanwoong asked, and Youngjo nodded. Hwanwoong lightly swatted at Youngjo’s thigh, not quite believing that tiny, quiet Giwook was in a band. With Dongmyeong. 

“He’s grown a lot. He produces a lot of their music after I taught him how to. He’s their bassist and does most of their raps,” Youngjo informs him, and Hwanwoong’s mouth drops. 

“No,” Hwanwoong gasped, "No way," and Youngjo nodded, a shit-eating grin on his face. 

“He’s quite something, now,” Youngjo confirmed, and Hwanwoong went quiet for a moment, trying to reconcile the Giwook he knew with the Giwook Youngjo was telling him about. 

“Anyone else?” Hwanwoong asked, and Youngjo shrugged. 

“I don’t think you’d know the others, but there are three others besides Dongmyeong and Giwook: Younghoon, Kanghyun, and Harin,” Youngjo explained, and Hwanwoong nodded. 

“The name Kanghyun sounds familiar, did he ever take dancing lessons?” Hwanwoong asked, and Youngjo nodded. 

“Now that you mention it, yeah, I think he’s mentioned he has, when Dongmyeong told him you were a dancer,” Youngjo said, and Hwanwoong’s good mood came crashing down, all with that single reminder that he’d become something to be talked about in the past tense. 

“He must’ve taken dance lessons at my company,” Hwanwoong mumbled, trying to continue the conversation and wincing at the way his crumbling mood was reflected in his tone. He’d always been shit at hiding his emotions. Youngjo glanced over at him, guilt written on his features, and Hwanwoong felt like crying. It wasn’t Youngjo’s fault he’d been gone that long, yet he was acting like he was a horrible person for trying to move on, for trying to accept it. Hwanwoong swallowed down the hurricane of emotions warring inside him and tried again to continue on with the conversation. “What are they like?”

Youngjo fixes his gaze back on the road as they turn onto the highway and hums as he thinks about what to say. “Well, Kanghyun is a dork, but he cares a lot about everyone. He makes sure to spend every anniversary with us, because he doesn’t want us to be alone. Younghoon and Harin usually join us when they can. If that tells you anything.”

“Yeah,” Hwanwoong tells Youngjo, quietly, on the verge of tears, again. “It does.”

“Love,” Youngjo murmurs, pain for Hwanwoong laced in his voice, “look at me.” Hwanwoong shakes his head, and Youngjo reaches out to lay a gentle hand on Hwanwoong’s thigh. “Look at me.” Hwanwoong relents, never able to seriously deny Youngjo anything, and when he does, Youngjo glances back from the road to offer him a knowing smile filled with nothing but love and support. And Hwanwoong feels the dam burst as tears track silently down his cheeks. “God I wish I could hold you right now, but I have to get us home. You must be tired, baby. Sleep, for now.” And because Hwanwoong doesn’t want to stay awake feeling like this, he calms himself down by focusing on the feeling of Youngjo’s steady hand on his thigh and the sound of the twins still talking in the back, and slowly falls asleep.

When he wakes up next, Youngjo is on the other side of him, outside the car, trying to maneuver him out of the car without waking him up. When Youngjo notices he’s awake, he offers him a sheepish grin. “Sorry, love. I didn’t want to wake you up so I was going to try to carry you in.”

“My knight in a pink wool peacoat,” Hwanwoong murmurs, shooting Youngjo a smile as the other scoffs and successfully lifts him out of the seat with a bit of help from him. Almost immediately, he pulls Hwanwoong as close to him as he can and kisses the crown of his head.

“I missed your little quips so much,” Youngjo whispers, and Hwanwoong swallows. 

“I missed you too, even though it was only a few days for me,” Hwanwoong whispers back, and Youngjo shuts and locks the car door before carrying him towards a house. It’s a nice, two story house that Hwanwoong thinks fits Youngjo very well. Hwanwoong can immediately tell what drew Youngjo to it, and he smiles, so glad that Youngjo hasn’t changed too much in the past few years. “Nice house.”

“Thank you,” Youngjo murmurs back, as they reach the doorway. “I bought it hoping you’d have liked it too.”

“You shouldn’t have,” Hwanwoong responds, and they fall quiet as they step through the doorway. It’s warm in here and smells like Youngjo’s unique scent that Hwanwoong had begun likening to home, as well as some sort of fall-themed scent in the air that Hwanwoong can’t name at the moment, still too sleepy to do much beyond keeping his eyes open and looking around. 

“I know,” Youngjo whispers into his hair as he carries him further into the house and Hwanwoong sighs. 

“Did it help?” He asks, and he can feel Youngjo’s nod in his hair. “Then it’s ok. I would’ve wanted you to find happiness if I really had died.”

“I know,” Youngjo repeats, and ducks them through a doorway near the end of the hallway. Hwanwoong is pleased to spot the same comforter from apparently five years ago. It doesn’t look that much worse for wear, like Youngjo has been taking care of it.

“Will you sleep with me?” Hwanwoong asks, and Youngjo looks down at him with so much love and affection in his eyes that it almost takes Hwanwoong’s breath away. His expression tells Hwanwoong all he needs to know, and he rolls his eyes as Youngjo sets him down gently on the bed. “You could’ve just said yes,” Hwanwoong muses as Youngjo takes his shoes off in a hurry back by the door, closes it, and rounds the bed to get in and curl up next to Hwanwoong. 

“I know,” Youngjo whispers once he’s curled around Hwanwoong as close as he can get. Hwanwoong makes a weak swat for Youngjo’s arm at the same answer as the last few times, because Youngjo’s shit-eating grin that came with the response tells Hwanwoong Youngjo knows exactly what he’s doing. Youngjo doesn’t stop him, and hugs him tighter for a second before relaxing his hold again. “Welcome home,” Youngjo says, with so much happiness and relief in his voice that all Hwanwoong can say is a soft, sincere:

“Thanks.”


	4. voice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He stops without realizing across the street from what looks to be a metalworker's studio, eyes fixed on the two german shepherds barking at him through the fence. **_Free them_**, a voice urges, and Hwanwoong reaches for his forehead as it throbs with the voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was _supposed_ to be the last for this part of the project (chapters covering just ep 1) but then it had to go and become a monster chapter as is so you get one more for this part! hope you enjoy!
> 
> that feel when the first thing you ever say to your bias is "same height buddies!"

When Hwanwoong next wakes up, there’s no light streaming through the gaps in the curtains like there was before, and he can’t feel Youngjo next to him. That in itself isn’t unusual- Youngjo usually wakes up before him if Hwanwoong doesn’t have to work- but sends Hwanwoong into a panic when recent events rush back to him. 

“Youngjo?” Hwanwoong calls, loud, scared, and hates how wrecked his voice sounds. How terrified he sounds to find himself alone. There isn’t an immediate answer, and Hwanwoong doesn’t want to call out again just in case either of the twins are asleep, so he swallows down his fear even though it feels like too much, and pushes himself out of the bed and doesn’t let himself stop moving until he’s in the hallway, where he can be quieter. “Youngjo?” He tries again, and startles when a door down the hallway opens, light spilling out, and Youngjo steps through, searching for Hwanwoong in the dark of the hallway. 

“I’m here, I’m here,” Youngjo says when he spots Hwanwoong, voice gentle and worried and perfect like always, and Hwanwoong can’t bring himself to say anything back, so he just shuffles down the hallway until he can step into Youngjo’s waiting arms. “I thought you would sleep for a little bit longer, or I wouldn’t have left. You waking up alone was the last thing I wanted to happen.”

“S’okay,” Hwanwoong manages, and sniffs, head buried in Youngjo’s chest. It takes him a moment before he can continue with, “You being here where I can find you is good enough for me.” Even though he eventually gets it out, his voice cracks all over the place and he hates it, but Youngjo doesn’t say anything about it, so Hwanwoong decides that’s probably one of the last things he needs to be worrying about at the moment. 

“Want to go back to bed?” Youngjo asks, and Hwanwoong shakes his head. 

“Do you still keep a couch in your home studio?” Hwanwoong asks, and Youngjo chuckles. 

“I’ll come back to bed with you, you know,” Youngjo hums into his hair, and Hwanwoong shrugs in his hold. 

“I don’t want to take you away from your work. You know I can sleep anywhere, just want to be close,” Hwanwoong explains, the _to you_ left unsaid, but Hwanwoong knows Youngjo got what he meant just fine. 

“Alright, if you’re sure,” Youngjo murmurs, pulling back, but not letting go of Hwanwoong. He pulls Hwanwoong by the hand to his new studio, and Hwanwoong is pleasantly surprised to find he kept a lot of his old stuff for his studio, including the couch. Youngjo doesn’t let go of him until he’s sitting comfortably on the couch, and squeezes his hand to reassure him before letting go and telling him, “I’ll be right back, I’m going to go get you a blanket.”

Hwanwoong nods, and that’s that. Once Youngjo leaves the room, his footsteps retreating down the hallway, Hwanwoong takes a moment to look around the studio, surprised to find a few photos of himself and Youngjo, him and Dongju, him, Youngjo, the twins, and their parents, and several of the twins. One, however, catches his attention more than the others. 

It’s a picture of Dongmyeong and Youngjo, and Dongmyeong is wearing graduation robes. They’re both smiling, but it doesn’t quite reach their eyes, and Hwanwoong can just see where he and Dongju were meant to be. The one next to it shows Dongmyeong in the same robes flanked on both sides by his parents, whose smiles don’t quite reach their eyes, either. 

Hwanwoong wishes he and Dongju were there. He wishes Dongju was there. He doesn’t have long to dwell on wondering what that day must have been like because Youngjo sweeps back into the room, comforter from their bed in hand. 

“I have returned!” He crows, quiet, but it’s loud enough to get his excitement across. 

“My knight in pajamas, this time!” Hwanwoong mockingly exclaims, making grabby hands for the comforter. Youngjo hands it to him with a pout, and Hwanwoong grabs Youngjo’s wrist instead of just the comforter to pull him down to kiss his cheek in gratitude. “Thank you,” he whispers, and Youngjo gives him a kiss on the forehead when he looks down to start fixing the comforter to be how he wants it. 

“Anything- anytime- for you,” Youngjo whispers back, and Hwanwoong smiles up at him. 

“Even to the moon,” Hwanwoong finishes softly at the familiar words, eyes wide because it hadn’t even occurred to him that Youngjo might have forgotten those words until he’d said them, but he can’t feel scared about it when Youngjo clearly does and all Hwanwoong can be is relieved. “Now get back to work,” Hwanwoong says, feeling suddenly shy under Youngjo’s intense gaze so close to his face that hasn’t left him since Hwanwoong pulled him down. 

“Yes, dear,” Youngjo says, smirking, and returns to his work. Hwanwoong falls back asleep to the barely there sound of Youngjo’s steady breaths. 

“Of course you can have your job back!” His boss- well, technically, former boss- tells him the next morning. Hwanwoong had gotten up before Youngjo, who’d somehow managed to get them both back to their bedroom during the night, and headed out, covering his face with a face mask and bucket hat that he’d found laying around. “As soon as I heard the news that your plane had landed and you were all fine, I knew I’d have you back if you wanted to be back.”

“Thank you so much, Hoseok,” Hwanwoong breathes, shoulders sagging from the tense set he’d had them in, not sure what to expect. “You don’t know how much that means to me,” Hwanwoong tells him, and Hoseok gives him a bright smile before clapping him on the back. 

“I’d be a dumbass not to take you back, especially if it’s only been a few days for you,” Hoseok laughed. 

“It has been, for me. It’s such a whiplash, thinking you were only on a plane for a few hours only to find out you’ve been missing for five whole years,” Hwanwoong explains, and Hoseok nods in understanding. 

“I can only imagine,” Hoseok says, and glances at his wristwatch. “Oh, shit, gotta go teach a class. But yeah, the job’s yours if you want it! You can watch in on the class if you want-,”

“I don’t think you’d get much done with one of the miracle survivors present,” Hwanwoong tells him, and Hoseok laughs. “I’ve got to get back anyway; I left without telling Youngjo or anyone really, and he’s bound to be worried if he’s awake by now.”

“Oh, of course. Come in next Monday, and we’ll work out a schedule that’ll work best for you,” Hoseok tells him, and Hwanwoong nods. 

“Next Monday, got it,” Hwanwoong repeats, and Hoseok nods. 

“Alright, really gotta go now, but I’ll see you Monday,” Hoseok says, giving him another signature smile before jogging away down the hallway. 

“Bye, Hoseok!” Hwanwoong calls petulantly after him, and Hoseok only gives him a back wave over his shoulder before ducking through a door at the end of the hall. With that out of the way, Hwanwoong takes his first real look around the space. 

The studio hasn’t really changed all that much except for the framed picture of himself he saw on the reception table (Hoseok had probably taken it down when the news came out that they were all alive, but hadn’t yet had a chance to get rid of completely) which is kind of a relief. There’s some new paint in places, but other than that, it’s the same old studio that he works at. 

He smiles to himself as he puts the facemask and bucket hat back on, and wanders back out onto the street. The street hadn’t changed all that much either, another thing to be thankful for, because it makes it easier to navigate back to the townhouse. He hums to himself as he walks down the familiar blocks to the subway, just taking everything in. 

He stops without realizing across the street from what looks to be a metalworker's studio, eyes fixed on the two german shepherds barking at him through the fence. **_Free them_**, a voice urges, and Hwanwoong reaches for his forehead as it throbs with the voice. 

**_Free them_**, he hears again, and tries to look around, but there’s no one around except for a car coming towards him from about a block away. He tries to start walking, and the car passes him, but as soon as he can’t see the dogs in his peripheral anymore, he hears it again:

**_Free them_**, he jerks his gaze back to the dogs, still clutching at his forehead as it throbs, and it repeats, again, when both dogs have entered his vision. **_Free them_**.

“That’s illegal,” Hwanwoong mutters, and forces himself to keep walking. By the time he’s made it home, he’s forgotten all about it, because the first thing he hears when he walks through the door is:

“Youngjo-hyung, I won’t ask you again. Where the _fuck_ are my parents?” It’s Dongju, and Hwanwoong feels a pit start to form in his stomach. _They still haven’t told him?_ he asks himself.

Nobody notices when he steps quietly into the living room, and Hwanwoong is almost glad for it. They’re all standing, Dongju the farthest away from him, and Youngjo so close he can touch if things get too much. 

“I-,” Dongmyeong starts, looking stricken and on the verge of sobbing. Dongju’s head whips towards Dongmyeong’s so quickly that Dongmyeong interrupts himself. 

“You’ve done enough, don’t you think?” Dongju says, voice dripping with venom. Hwanwoong gasps quietly. He’s never seen the twins fight like this. How could Dongmyeong and Youngjo have messed up so bad to make the sweet Dongju curse and look at his twin like he didn’t know him? Dongmyeong starts crying at that, and it falls quiet for a moment. 

“There was nothing anyone could do,” Youngjo says quietly, voice weak and cracking in every place it possibly can. Dongju just looks at him, waiting for him to continue. Hwawnoong can hear Youngjo’s ensuing swallow, and winces. “They were in a car accident. A truck in front of them skidded on some black ice, and they couldn’t avoid it. The police told us they died instantly."

“At least you finally told me,” Dongju says, breathing out raggedly, and that’s when Hwanwoong notices his eyes aren’t focusing. Before Hwanwoong can say anything, he’s starting to fall, and it’s all Dongmyeong can do to keep his head from hitting the floor. 

“Youngjo, call 911,” Hwanwoong exclaims, pushing past his fiance to get down on his knees next to Dongju, putting a hand over his mouth, relieved beyond all belief that he’s breathing. “Now!” Hwanwoong snaps when Youngjo still hasn’t moved, still shocked. Youngjo kicks into action though, at the order, and furiously digs into his pockets for his phone. 

They’re quiet until the ambulance arrives, and Dongmyeong is chosen to go in the ambulance with him, so it’s just Youngjo and Hwanwoong on the ride to the hospital. 

“You shouldn’t have waited,” Hwanwoong says softly, and Youngjo nods. It’s the only thing said in the car until they reach the ER. 

Hours later, when Dongju is stable, having woken up earlier complaining of a massive headache to just Hwanwoong, apparently having decided to ignore the other two in the room for the time being. Now, he’s just sleeping, and so are Youngjo and Dongmyeong, but for some reason, Hwanwoong can’t seem to. He’s just sitting there in the quiet of their room, when suddenly, his head throbs out of nowhere. 

**_Free them_**, he hears again, like it’s everywhere, and it hurts, it hurts so much. He can see the dogs just past the gate in his mind’s eye, except it’s dark this time, and snowing, and Hwanwoong’s sure he’s never seen that before, but he doesn’t have time to think about it before his head throbs again. 

**_Free them_**, like the sound of the words is ricocheting off of the walls of his consciousness and he whimpers. He knows, at that moment, with startling clarity, that the words won’t stop until he goes, so he gets to his feet, and carefully, quietly, makes his way out of the room. 

To the lady at the front desk, he says, “If the people in the Room 32 ask where their other person went, please tell them I went back to the house to grab some more clothes and blankets.” It’s a lie, but he can’t bring himself to feel bad about it when the command is still ringing around in his head, still throbbing. She nods, and tells him to be safe. He nods, and makes his way out to the streets. 

It takes him almost an hour to get there on foot, since the subways aren’t running at this hour, but he does, and when he makes eye contact with the two barking dogs, the command rings in his head, as loud as ever; **_Free them_**.

His eyes start to flit around wildly for something to break the chain with, not able to focus on anything else, so he jumps when he feels a hand on his shoulder. When he turns, he finds it’s Yeosang, black hoodie up over his hair and matching facemask to Hwanwoong’s own across his mouth. 

“What are you doing here?” The other asks, voice just as strained as Hwanwoong imagines his voice would be, at the moment. Hwanwoong swallows and answers with the truth. 

“Setting them free,” Hwanwoong says, and it comes out like a question. Yeosang’s eyes widen, and he looks down at the object in his hand that Hwanwoong hadn’t noticed yet. It’s a pair of chain cutters. They lock eyes again, just standing still for a moment, before they give each other a small nod. “What if they attack us?” Hwanwoong asks just as Yeosang moves to do it. Yeosang laughs. 

“Well, then they’d just be doing their job,” Yeosang tells him, and Hwanwoong moves aside. Yeosang continues forward. It takes less than a minute, and suddenly, they’re both criminals. 

“So, what now?” Hwanwoong asks, and Yeosang shrugs. 

“Hell if I know. Can I drop you off anywhere?” Yeosang asks, and Hwanwoong nods, hesitantly. 

“With what? I didn’t see you come in on anything,” Hwanwoong points out and Yeosang laughs. 

“Because I am- was a police officer, I wasn’t about to drive my bike all the way here so my license plate could be in full view while I did it,” Yeosang explains, and Hwanwoong nods, a soundless oh forming on his lips. “Yeah,” Yeosang laughs, turning around and making a ‘follow me’ motion with his hand. Hwanwoong follows.

“So, like, by bike do you mean a motorcycle kind of bike?” Hwanwoong asks, jogging to catch up with him. Yeosang turns to look over his shoulder at him. 

“Is there any other kind of bike?” He asks, looking half-amused, half-worried. Hwanwoong frowns. 

“There’s regular bikes, like bicycles. And those motor scooter things,” Hwanwoong points out, and Yeosang makes a contemplative humming noise. 

“I guess. But yeah, it’s a motorcycle, got a problem with that? I can just stay with you while you walk back if you don’t feel okay with riding it,” Yeosang offers, and Hwanwoong shakes his head. 

“I’m fine with riding it, I was just curious,” Hwanwoong says, and Yeosang nods. 

“Well, if that changes, let me know and I’ll pull over to walk you back. Oh― can’t believe I forgot ― where do I need to drop you off?” Yeosang asks him, and Hwanwoong huffs out a short laugh. 

“The ER, the kid I was with collapsed out of nowhere earlier. Unrelated, we think, to the whole five years thing, but still,” Hwanwoong explains, and Yeosang sucks in a sharp breath. 

“That sucks, man, I’m sorry. I hope it’s nothing too serious,” Yeosang offer, and Hwanwoong smiles. 

“Thank you,” Hwanwoong says, and means it. They reach Yeosang’s motorcycle, a black one, and Yeosang patiently helps him get on and explains how to hold on and get his attention if he needs to. From there, they don’t talk as Yeosang drives, and it feels like they reach the ER entrance he’d exited from earlier faster than he was expecting. 

“Thank you,” Hwanwoong says again, and means it again. Yeosang nods. 

“Have any phone number I can call with, for later? Maybe to catch up later and try and figure out what that was?” Yeosang asks, and Hwanwoong shakes his head.

“We really should be here all day tomorrow, just call the ER and and ask after Yeo Hwanwoong,” he tells him, and Yeosang nods. 

“Alright, well, you should probably get inside before you freeze, and I’ve gotta get back or else Mingi is going to figure out that I am not just out getting snacks,” Yeosang explains, and Hwanwoong laughs. 

“Well, good luck with that. Later,” Hwanwoong says, and Yeosang nods before turning on the engine and pulling out of the parking lot. Hwanwoong turns back around and walks into the lobby. “Did anyone ask about me?” Hwanwoong asks the lady at the front, and she shakes her head. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” she chirps, and then goes right back to looking exhausted as he turns and heads for the opening ER door. 

It doesn’t take him long to reach Dongju’s room, and once there, he tries to open and close the door and quickly and quietly as possible. 

“Did you set them free?” He hears from behind him, and Hwanwoong jumps, the door shutting a bit louder than he’d hoped as a result. He turns, scanning the room, relieved to find Youngjo and Dongmyeong asleep. He nearly jumps out of his skin when he spots Dongju, perfectly lucid, sitting up in bed and looking right at him. “Did you set them free?” He repeats and Hwanwoong sucks in a breath. 

“You heard it too?” Hwanwoong asks, and Dongju nods. “Well, we- I- did.”

“We?” Dongju asks, confused and Hwanwoong shrugs. 

“A slip of the tongue. Now go back to sleep. You’ve had a long few days,” Hwanwoong tells him, and Dongju nods and settles back in to sleep. 

Once Hwanwoong has managed to curl up to Youngjo even with the awkward hospital chairs, he finds himself falling asleep in seconds. 

“Are you Kim Youngjo?” the doctor asks, looking at him for some reason. Hwanwoong shakes his head. 

“That would be him,” Hwanwoong says, hooking his thumb over in his fiancé’s direction, who’s in the process of sitting up straighter and trying to inconspicuously fix his posture and failing.

“Oh, very sorry about that, I just assumed since the patient is holding your hand,” the doctor explains.

“It’s alright, I’m his fiancé,” Hwanwoong explains, and is impressed when the doctor barely bats an eye at that statement. 

“Congratulations!” the doctor exclaims, genuinely, and Hwanwoong finds his respect for this doctor growing. 

“Oh, thank you,” Hwanwoong murmurs, and turns back to Dongju, who’s looking at the doctor with an impatient stare. The doctor must notice it too because he turns to Youngjo a little faster than necessary.

“Right! I came here to tell you about the results of our tests! None of the usual tests came back conclusive, so we recommend admitting him for further testing. We promise to find out what’s wrong with him,” the doctor explains, and Youngjo nods.

“Sounds like we’ll have to: Dongju’s never had anything like this happen to him before-,”

“You’re wrong,” Dongju mumbles from the bed, cutting Youngjo off. He looks directly at the doctor when he does. “I have collapsed before. It was the week before we left for LA.”

“What?” he hears Dongmyeong say, and Dongju nods.

“Me and mom and dad decided to keep it to ourselves and agreed we’d scheduled an appointment with the doctor for after we got back from LA,” Dongju explained. “but, that never ended up happening.”

“Can I ask why?” the doctor asks, and Dongju nods.

“Well, we left LA five years ago,” Dongju says, “and didn’t land until a few days ago.” It’s quiet for a moment as the doctor processes what he’s said, but Dongju doesn’t look away, and meets the doctor’s gaze with equal parts determination and fear. 

“So you’re...,” the doctor starts, but ends up trailing off. Dongju nods.

“Me and Woongie-hyung were on Flight 828,” Dongju finishes for him, and the doctor’s mouth drops open for a moment before he realizes it’s open and closes it as fast as he can. He clears his throat.

“Then I highly recommend admittance so we can do our best to figure out what’s going on with you,” the doctor recommends, and everyone nods. 

“I think that would be for the best,” Dongju says, and the doctor nods to himself. 

“Alright. I’ll go call a nurse to come in and start the admittance process, and if you need anything more, ask for Dr.Park,” the doctor says. “Oh- just realized I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Park Seonghwa.”

“Thank you, Dr.Park,” Dongju tells him, which earns him a nod and a smile, and then Dr.Park is walking back out the door at the same time a nurse is coming in. 

“Yeo Hwanwoong?” She asks the room, and Hwanwoong shares a confused glance with Youngjo before raising his hand.

“That would be me,” Hwanwoong tells her, and she nods. 

“Follow me, you have a call for you in the lobby,” the nurse tells him, and Hwanwoong’s breath catches in his throat. She quickly shows him to a phone at the far end of the lobby and motions to it, saying, “It’s ready to go, just pick it up.” He nods, and goes to do just that.

“Hey, is this Hwanwoong?” Hwanwoong hears from the other end, and it takes him a second to recognize the voice on the other end because he’s never heard it through a phone call before.

“Yeah- Yeosang- what’s up?” Hwanwoong asks, and Yeosang sighs. 

“Um, yeah, my friends, who happen to be cops, they um, they got a video of us breaking that chain that someone sent in. Someone from across the street, they said,” Yeosang informs, slowly, allowing Hwanwoong to take it in. “They said they can keep us from getting charged if we return the dogs back to the owner and apologize and get the owner to not charge us.”

“That’s... a lot,” Hwanwoong finally settles for, and Yeosang laughs a little. 

“Yeah, it is. Are you still at the hospital?” Yeosang asks and when Hwanwoong confirms, says, “Good, because we’re already outside.” 

“Well, uh, hopefully with lights off?” Hwanwoong asks, wincing because he’s away from his family. 

“Oh, of course. I told them you would come willingly so there was no need for anything like that,” Yeosang explains and Hwanwoong’s shoulders sag, relieved there’s at least that.

“So, um, I guess I’ll be right out then, huh?” Hwanwoong asks, and Yeosang laughs a bit again.

“Yup,” he says, and then away from the phone, “He’s coming now, guys, relax,” and then again to Hwanwoong, “You're still in the ER, right? I had them park here because it’s where I remembered dropping you off before.”

“Yup, I'll be right down,” Hwanwoong whispers, and then hangs up. When he gets back to the room, Dongju is looking at him, amused, because- right- somehow he knew what had transpired while Hwanwoong was out last night, and the other two are just giving him questioning looks. 

“Hoseok is here to take me out for lunch, I should be back soon. Text him if there are any updates, ok? And I’ll come right back,” Youngjo is giving him a look like he doesn’t believe him, and Hwanwoong tries to keep his face calm. He hates lying to Youngjo but until he knows what’s going on, he refuses to tell Youngjo about last night, or today, evidently.

“Alright,” Youngjo eventually says, and Hwanwoong goes over to give him a quick kiss on the cheek before retreating out of the room with a wave. 

He walks quickly through the ER and the entrance without looking up, and chances a glance at the police SUV parked right next to the entrance to confirm it is indeed Yeosang and Co. and he isn’t about to get into a random police car. Thankfully, Yeosang gives him a small wave from his place in the far side of the backseat, and Hwanwoong hurriedly climbs in, not looking back.

“Yeo Hwanwoong?” the police officer in the front seat directly in front of him asks, and Hwanwoong nods, looking up- finally- only to meet Officer Jung’s eyes.

“Uh, yes, so sorry about last night, Officer Jung,” Hwanwoong immediately, hurriedly apologizes, and the officer offers a short laugh. 

“If you get out of this fine, you’re free to call me Wooyoung,” Officer Jung offers. “Would you, by any chance, be able to tell us why you did what you did?” 

“No,” Hwanwoong answers, because even to him, it sounds crazy. “I wouldn't be able to.”

“Thought so. let’s just pick up the dogs and get on with it,” the other officer says, and that’s when Hwanwoong finally looks over and recognizes him, too. 

“Lieutenant Kim?!” Hwanwoong asks, and the officer nods without looking at him, concentrating on the road as he navigates them onto the main road from the hospital’s parking lot. 

“Just like Wooyoungie here said, if you get out of this fine you’re free to call me Hongjoong,” Lieutenant Kim says, ignoring the way Officer Jung complains about the nickname.

“Don’t let either of them scare you, they’re really just big softies,” Yeosang tells him conspiratorially, and Hwanwoong gives a small smile. “Oh yeah, how’s that kid doing?”

“Oh, Dongju?” Hwanwoong asks, and Yeosang nods. “He’s fine for now. Doctor Park recommended we admit him so that’s what we plan to do.”

“Did your doctor happen to give his full name?” Lieutenant Kim asked from the front seat, and Hwanwoong nodded.

“Yeah, Park Seonghwa, why?” Hwanwoong asks, and the other three laugh. 

“He’s a friend of ours. Small world, huh?” Yeosang explains at Hwanwoong’s confused look. “He was doing experimental cancer research with a team before the flight took off, but now he’s an ER doctor.”

“Huh,” Hwanwoong says, and then, it’s mostly quiet until they pick up the dogs. The two are remarkably well behaved for two fully grown, healthy german shepherds, so Hwanwoong can’t help but coo at them every now and then as they drive towards the metalworking studio from last night. 

“We’re here,” Lieutenant Kim says as he pulls over, and when Hwanwoong looks up, sure enough, they’re back at the gate, left open now that the chain has been cut, Hwanwoong gets out behind Yeosang, eyes blinking rapidly to get used to the light that greets them. He looks around to shake it off, and when he finally manages to, he finds he’s staring at a metal sign of the numbers ‘828’. Hwanwoong elbows Yeosang lightly to get his attention, who grumbles for a second before gasping sharply when he spots it.

“What are the chances that’s a coincidence after last night?” Hwanwoong asks, and Yeosang is grimacing when he glances over at him. 

“Not very high,” Yeosang mumbles and then Lieutenant Kim is calling them over, leading the dogs on leashes behind them. 

“Alright, let me do the talking. all you have to do is apologize, got it?” Lieutenant Kim says, and they both nod. “Okay then, follow me.” Lieutenant Kim walks right into the studio. Yeosang stops abruptly at the entrance, and when Hwanwoong checks to see if Lieutenant Kim has noticed all he hears is the Lieutenant introducing himself. 

“What is it?” Hwanwoong whispers, and Yeosang shakes his head. 

“I heard it again. It wasn’t the dogs. I need to go look,” Yeosang explains and Hwanwoong sucks in a breath. 

“Alright, go. I’ll keep the lieutenant and the owner occupied by crying and playing the trauma victim card, I guess,” Hwanwoong tells him, and Yeosang nods before turning around and walking briskly off further into the yard. 

“Guys! You can come in now!” the lieutenant says, and because Hwanwoong is good at crying on command he immediately starts crying as he walks in. Lieutenant Kim looks stricken when he sees him and the owner- a lean older man with a beard and a graying face- looks much the same from where he’s sitting on the ground petting the dogs. 

“I’m- I’m so sorry,” Hwanwoong begins, “I don’t know came over me, I never thought I’d do anything like that,” Hwanwoong sobs, and the owner looks about two seconds away from trying to comfort him when they hear a crashing sound outside. Lieutenant Kim narrows his eyes at Hwanwoong. 

“Where did Yeosang go?” Before the Lieutenant finishes his question the owner is already pushing the dogs off of him and getting up. Too fast for someone that’s worried about their property. He looks mad. Hwanwoong shrugs weakly, still putting effort into playing the part, and the lieutenant huffs and turns to jog after the owner, Hwanwoong following along slowly after them. 

They come to a pathway through the maze of metal working materials, and Yeosang is standing in front of a shed, with an extra strength padlock on the door that looks entirely too out of place for such a run down metalworking studio. Yeosang doesn’t even glance up at them as he grabs a metal bar from the ground and starts hacking away at the lock. 

“Yeosang what are you-,” Lieutenant Kim starts to ask, stepping in between Yeosang and the owner just as Yeosang gets the lock off and pulls the door open. Hwanwoong can see inside from a mirror across the way from the door, and almost throws up. 

Because in the shed are two young girls, dirty and clinging onto each other on a dirty mattress that seems to have been haphazardly stuffed in there. Yeosang looks wildly up at the lieutenant, eyes widening when they both notice the owner picking up a crowbar at the same time. 

“Hongjoong!” Yeosang calls out, and Hongjoong sidesteps the swing before turning and pushing the man into the ground, crowbar having fallen out of the owner’s hands in the scuffle.

“Well damn, Yeosang. Looks like you still got it,” Hongjoong says after they’ve all caught their breaths.

“It’s only been ten days for me, Hongjoong. Hwanwoong, go get Wooyoung,” Hwanwoong doesn’t need to be told twice, and runs to get Wooyoung about as fast as he can in the metal labyrinth. 

“Wooyoung!” Hwanwoong calls as soon as he’s able. The officer looks up from where he’d been leaning against the car, already tensing at Hwanwoong’s tone. “Owner,” a pant, “had two girls,” a breath, “in his,” a cough, “shed.” 

“Oh god,” is all Wooyoung says, and motions at the car with his thumb. “Get in, I’m gonna call it in. Are they both okay?”

“Yes, Hongjoong has the man restrained. Or at least, he did when I left,” Hwanwoong explains, finally able to get a full sentence out.

“Then he’s still probably got him restrained. Now get in, I’ll call it in,” Wooyoung directs him, reaching for his radio. Hwanwoong doesn’t need to be told twice. Needless to say, he’s going to have some explaining to do by the time he gets back to his family.


	5. erupt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _“Just got here,” Hwanwoong says as he goes, Yeosang and Youngjo half-jogging to keep up with him. “It called you, didn’t it?” He throws over his shoulder as he comes to a stop at the very front of the crowd. They’re all in a huddle at the gate, and the plane is just sitting there, no noise, nothing._

“Is Son Dongju still in the ER?” Hwanwoong asks, that evening, once he’s been dropped back off by Wooyoung. He’d had to stay to give his testimony, which, honestly wasn’t much, but as a witness he guessed it was necessary. He just wished the process had been faster because he definitely had stuff to explain now. The lady at the front desk, who knew who he was at this point, shook her head. 

“They moved him to one of the general rooms, let me pull the room number up for you,” she informed him, turning to look intently at her computer screen as she typed for a few seconds. “Looks like he’s in Room 432, would you like me to call someone to come get you?” 

“If that’s easier for you,” Hwanwoong told her, and she nodded. 

“I think it’d be easier for you, honestly. I’m still confused by this hospital’s floors and I’ve been working here for five years,” she joked, reaching for the phone. He fell silent as she tapped on the phone’s dialing pad and waited. 

“Hi!” She greeted after a moment, “This is Michelle from the ER? Your fiance is back,” she informed, and Hwanwoong swallowed nervously. Youngjo had answered… normally this would be more than fine, but Hwanwoong wasn’t sure how to explain his absence and Youngjo was sure to have figured out he was lying; either by having called Hoseok or just knowing more time had passed than should have for where he said he was going. She listened intently for a moment before hanging up and smiling at Hwanwoong. 

“He’s headed here now, it should only be a few minutes. Feel free to sit down until he arrives,” Michelle told him, and he gave her a small smile before retreating to one of the chairs in the far corner from both ER entrances. He curled up in the chair, knees to his chest, and before he could put his forehead down, spotted the TV in the corner, showing the news. The headline playing at the moment read, _2 Missing Girls Found At Metalworker’s Studio_, and Hwanwoong swallows when he focuses on the footage and sees himself in plain view, being interviewed by Wooyoung for his statement. 

He hopes they weren’t watching the news in the room. He lets his forehead fall on his knees then, eyes closing as the stress of the day catches up to him. He feels like crying again, but he doesn’t want to. Not here, and not so soon after all the crying he’d done the past few days. He takes a few deep breaths instead, his mind going pleasantly quiet as he focuses on the exhaustion swirling around his limbs. 

He thinks he must’ve been close to falling asleep because it doesn’t feel like long before someone– Youngjo, he guesses– nudges his shoulder. It’s gentle, but it’s harsher than normal, and Hwanwoong knows exactly why. He lied, and he never does that. Not with Youngjo, at least. 

He doesn’t move for a moment, his fears taking over, before he takes a breath and forces himself to relax. It takes him another moment to get himself moving, unfolding from the ball he’d curled himself into, and when he does, fully expects Youngjo to be looking at him with anger in his eyes. So he just. Doesn’t look at Youngjo, and instead focuses on the ground. 

“Where did you go?” Youngjo asks, voice quiet, controlled. Hwanwoong flinches. It’s the tone he uses with his superiors over video calls. Hwanwoong never thought it’d be used with him. 

“An animal shelter, a metalworking studio, a police car, take your pick,” Hwanwoong says, trying for light but it ends up sounding hollow. Because it’s how he feels. He feels cold, and numb, and exhausted, and all he wants is to curl up with Youngjo and sleep but he can’t because instead they’re fighting because Hwanwoong couldn’t tell Youngjo the truth.

At least, he thinks that’s what this is: them fighting. 

“This isn’t the time to be joking around-,” Youngjo starts, but Hwanwoong shakes his head, pointing to the TV that he peeked at. It’s still running the story. He can still be seen in the background. 

“I’m not,” Hwanwoong says, and he hears Youngjo gasp. “Look, I’m just going to go find somewhere to stay for the night. You stay with Dongju and tell him I’m sorry for not being there.” Hwanwoong stands up and ducks around Youngjo, heading to the door. He feels hands clasp around his wrist, and he turns, looking– truly looking– at Youngjo for the first time, and instead of anger, most of what he sees is just hurt, plain and simple. Sure, there’s anger there, but Hwanwoong can see it’s a result of the hurt. A defense mechanism. 

“At least let me call Geonhak, I don’t want you to be alone without a phone,” Youngjo murmurs, and Hwanwoong steps closer to him. 

“If I knew what was going on, I would tell you, but I don’t, so I don’t know how to explain it,” Hwanwoong says, leaning his forehead on Youngjo’s shoulder. “I think I’m going crazy, honestly.”

“Love,” Youngjo sighs, bringing his arms up to wrap around his waist, “you’re one of the most sane people I know, what’s going on?”

“I told you, I don’t know,” Hwanwoong mumbled, muffled by Youngjo’s shirt.

“Just do your best, love,” Youngjo murmured, pulling him back to the bench seat near the corner. “I’ll listen, and we’ll figure it out together, ok? Just like we always did.”

“Like we always do,” Hwanwoong mouthed, a frown finding its way onto his face, but he shook it off, determined to try explaining the current predicament to his fiance. “Yesterday morning, after I went out to talk to Hoseok about my job, I was walking back to the station, right?” Youngjo nods, and he continues, “Well, that metalworking studio is on the way there. When I was walking past it, I heard a voice in my head say ‘Free them’ and suddenly I couldn’t move. I was just stuck staring at the gate, where two dogs were barking at me from. Before you say anything, _I know_ that’s impossible, but it happened. I forced myself to go home, where that argument was happening-,” 

“So that’s where you were,” Youngjo mutters, and Hwanwoong almost laughs at how _that’s_ what Youngjo decides to focus on out of that. 

“-and then last night I couldn’t get to sleep and I heard it again. It hurt and I just knew somehow that going there would make it stop. When I got there, another passenger that I’d talked to briefly the day before you came for us was there too, and we cut the chain and it stopped. 

We thought that’s what it meant, but then today someone caught us on camera so his police friends made us come with them to deliver the dogs back, but when we got there he heard it again and asked me to distract them while he looked around and he found the shed those two girls were in. 

I had to give my statement and that took forever but they dropped me off as soon as it was done. And that’s all I know.” Hwanwoong finished, and Youngjo took a deep breath before lifting his chin up to make Hwanwoong look into his eyes. 

“As crazy as it sounds, I believe you, because I know your tell and the fact that another passenger heard it too just adds to the evidence that whatever it was was real,” Youngjo tells him, and Hwanwoong nods. He learns forward to press a kiss to Hwanwoong’s forehead, and as soon as his lips touch Hwanwoong’s skin, he sees the plane, parked, silent outside the hangar. Hwanwoong’s eyes fly back open and they immediately focus on the time listed on the news cast behind Youngjo’s head _**8:28 PM**_, and he’s filled with an overwhelming urge to _go back_. 

“Youngjo, we- I- I have to go back,” Hwanwoong tells him, and Yougjo pulls back just enough to search his face. He must see how urgently Hwanwoong feels he needs to go back, because he nods and gets up. 

“To the plane?” Youngjo asks, and Hwanwoong nods. “Alright, let me tell Dongmyeong we’re going to be gone for a while.”

“Be quick, I don’t know how much longer I can stay,” Hwanwoong says, and Youngjo nods, before turning off to hurry through the ER to where Dongju’s new room is. 

“Are you okay, sweetie?” Michelle calls worriedly from her spot at the reception desk, and Hwanwoong startles at the question when he realizes she’s talking to him. He nods, and she smiles back. “Had to ask, looked like things were getting a little tense there.” He nods again, and she smiles at him one last time before going back to her work. 

It’s not even been ten minutes before Youngjo comes back, looking out of breath as he half-jogs up to Hwanwoong. “We’re good to go, ready?” Youngjo asks, and Hwanwoong nods. 

Youngjo gasps as they pull up to the entrance of the hangar when they find many of the passengers already there, but Hwanwoong isn’t surprised at all. Whatever has been talking to him, directing him, brought them all here for a reason. Hwanwoong has a feeling it wants them to witness something, so he directs Youngjo to park where he is and hops out before Youngjo can get his key out of the ignition. A motorcycle pulls up directly behind him, and Yeosang steps off, almost as quickly as Hwanwoong had the car. 

“Do you know what’s going on yet?” Yeosang asks as soon as his helmet is off his head, and Hwanwoong shakes his head, already turning towards the plane and picking his way through the haphazardly parked cars and crowd of people already assembled here. 

“Just got here,” Hwanwoong says as he goes, Yeosang and Youngjo half-jogging to keep up with him. “It called you, didn’t it?” He throws over his shoulder as he comes to a stop at the very front of the crowd. They’re all in a huddle at the gate, and the plane is just sitting there, no noise, nothing. 

“Yep, got an image of it in my head and knew I had to come,” Yeosang says, panting as they still, and a quiet falls over the crowd. Hwanwoong meant to say something more, but found he couldn’t. He gently reached for Youngjo’s hand, who offered it readily. 

And then, the plane exploded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> to be continued in part 2 : reentry, coming soon!


End file.
